“She May Be Feeling Tired” – Iga Swiatek’s Sudden Split With Coach Forces Tennis Insider to Make Strong Claim Over Her Recent Struggles

It’s starting to feel like a season of change for WTA players, and the shakeups are happening fast! After Naomi Osaka and Coco Gauff made bold moves to switch up their coaching teams, the latest surprise comes from none other than World No. 1 Iga Swiatek. In a move that’s left many fans and experts buzzing, Swiatek has decided to part ways with her long-time coach, Tomasz Wiktorowski. Tennis expert Adam Romer has chimed in with his two cents, offering an intriguing take on what might be driving these changes.

The Polish sensation took to Instagram on Friday morning and revealed that she, along with Wiktorowski, has decided to split. “After 3 years of the greatest achievements in my career, together with my coach Tomasz Wiktorowski, we decided to part way,” Swiatek wrote. “I want to start with a big thank you and appreciating our work together.” While several speculations are being made in this regard, the latest to offer his reasoning is the expert from the “Tenisklub” magazine, Romer. 

Romer engaged in an interview with Sport. pl and shed his perspective on the split between Swiatek and Wiktorowski. “I’m not surprised, because the situation in recent weeks around Iga after the US Open was exceptional.” Swiatek faced some serious challenges after her French Open campaign. She was ousted in the third round of Wimbledon, the Semi-final of the Cincinnati Masters, and the quarterfinals of the US Open. But what followed after the grand slam was yet more heartbreaking as Swiatek did not play a single match. 

She first withdrew from the China Open, where she would have been the defending champion, citing personal reasons. The pole further took similar decisions for the Korea Open, and other tournaments in the Asian Swing. Continuing further about these struggles, Romer said, “This season has also been a real struggle for her, there was some visible friction. She may be feeling tired. I also see similarities to the breakup with Piotr Sieprzutowski. They talked about their plans for the season at a conference, and a week later Iga informed us that they were ending their cooperation”. For the unversed, Swiatek split with her former coach Sieprzutowski after 5-years of partnership in 2021. 

Several experts claimed that the previous split came due to burnout. In fact, Sieprzutowski also signaled this and stated, “It was one of the elements of burnout that I am talking about. We came to the point where it was difficult for us to develop together.” Now, Romer believes that a similar could have been the case with Wiktorowski, who worked with Swiatek for three years since 2021 and helped her win 3 Roland Garros titles, a US Open title, and a Bronze Medal in the Olympics. But besides this, there were several other challenges that Swiatek faced and one of the most pressing concerns was the scheduling of tournaments. 

Swiatek called out the schedule of the tournaments time and again and highlighted that the increased number of matches the players are bound to play is taking a physical toll on them. “Our schedule is crazy, and it’s getting more crazy every year, which is scary,” she said. Meanwhile, Swiatek is now looking for a change, and the rumors about her next partnership are equally interesting. 

Is Iga Swiatek planning to join forces with Naomi Osaka’s ex-teammate?

Iga Swiatek has decided to withdraw from yet another event at the Asian Swing and will remain absent from the Wuhan Open as well. While many speculated her latest withdrawals to be an after-effect of the numerous tournaments she played, Siwatek herself gave a clarification. 

“Due to this important change on my team, I give myself a couple of weeks to start a cooperation with a new coach,” Swiatek wrote on Instagram. “I’m in the middle of first talks with coaches from abroad (non-Polish) because I’m ready to take the next step of my career. I will let you know when I make a decision.” But interestingly, the name which is making rounds in the tennis corridors as Swiatek’s next coach is creating some buzz. 

According to the Polish publication Sport.pl, Wim Fissette is leading the pack to become Swiatek’s next coach. Interestingly, Fissette is Naomi Osaka’s ex-coach, with whom the Japanese player separated last month following her poor performance at the US Open where she lost in the second round. Fissette worked with Osaka in two separate stints: from 2019 to the summer of 2022, and again in 2023 till September this year, when Osaka resumed her tennis career following the birth of her daughter, Shai. He also helped her clinch two of her four Grand Slam titles.

For now, it would be interesting to see how soon will Iga Swiatek return to the courts and who will be her guide for her upcoming tournaments.